MEET OUR
TEAM
JULIANA KELLY
COMPANY FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR
Juliana began her dance training at the age of three, studying ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, hip hop, pointe, and acrobatics at a competitive level throughout Canada and the United States. Since 2004, she has specialized in tap dance, cultivating a deep connection to the form both as an artist and educator.
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Following high school, Juliana joined Downbeats Tap Company under the direction of Cathy Duncan, performing in the East Coast Tap Conference, Taking the Rhythm Train, Embrace the Rhythm, Toronto’s Live in Culture campaign, and various productions across Ontario. Juliana was a founding contributing artist with the Toronto Rhythm Initiative (TRI), a collective of tap dancers committed to voicing the artistry of Toronto’s professional tap dance community. With TRI, she has performed in eighteen original
productions, held long-standing faculty roles with the Summer Youth Intensive and Junior Prep Program, and has additionally served as co-producer for both initiatives since 2016.
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Juliana has pursued advanced training and performance opportunities internationally, including studying abroad with Heather Cornell and performed in Walk To The Beat (New York), Rhythm Lives! (Montreal Tap Festival) alongside living legend Arthur Duncan and members of Tapestry Dance Company, as well as performing in the Inaugural Toronto Body Percussion Festival (Allison Toffan), Ron Davis' Symphronica, and The Toronto International Tap Festival (both choreographed by Dianne Montgomery) and Rhythm and Sound's Illumination (Cori Giannotta and Johnathan Morin). She has also served on faculty for the Rhythm, Body & Soul Tap Festival (Calgary) and the Cleveland Tap Experience. Her work was featured as both choreographer and performer in Perspectives In Rhythm at Fall for Dance North (curated by Allison Toffan and Michael Caldwell).
In recent years, Juliana co-produced The Artist Symposium featuring Dianne Walker, Intersection 2021, and both the 2022 and 2024 editions of the Toronto International Tap Dance Festival in collaboration with Allison Toffan.
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As an educator, Juliana is highly regarded for her musicality-driven choreography and technical precision. She regularly teaches at workshops, intensives, conventions, and adjudicates across the country. Her students are recognized for their excellence in both technique and artistry. In 2016, she founded The Rhythm Ensemble, a pre-professional tap dance company committed to providing innovative training and performance opportunities for emerging artists. Juliana remains dedicated to nurturing the next generation of dancers while honoring the rich history and evolving legacy of tap dance.​
HOUYS GARABEDIAN
production coordinator, Tap faculty
Houys Garabedian is a dedicated tap dance educator with nearly 20 years of experience in dance and nearly a decade of teaching in both music and tap dance. Her training encompasses tap, jazz, acro, hip hop, ballet, lyrical, contemporary, and song and dance, although her focus has long centred on tap. Deeply rooted in the Toronto tap dance community, Houys brings a unique, music-first approach to her teaching, drawing from her background as a classically trained pianist.
Since earning her Level 10 Certificate through the Royal Conservatory of Music, Houys has been teaching piano since 2016. Her dual expertise in music and dance allows her to guide students in understanding tap not only as a movement practice but as a percussive, musical art form. Her goal as an educator is to help dancers develop strong musicality, rhythmic awareness, and a deeper connection to the music they create.
In addition to teaching, Houys continues to perform and learn. She has trained extensively through programs like Heather Cornell’s Eddie Brown - The Lost
Routines and Tap Labs (2023), as a member of the Rhythm Ensemble’s pre-professional company (2017-2024). She has also appeared in productions such as Between Two Di’s (2022), Perspectives in Rhythm (2022), Explorations in Sound (2023), TRI Explores the Music of Motown (2024), and as a member of Neo Soul Ties in the 2024 TITDF. Additionally, she dances with Ripple Effect, a new outreach company under the direction of Allison Toffan.
Houys has also embraced work behind the scenes as a producer. She was part of the production team for the 2022 Toronto International Tap Dance Festival and went on to produce the Rhythm Ensemble show Explorations in Sound (2023). In 2024, she returned to the festival as both a performer and producer.
Whether in the studio, on stage, or behind the scenes, Houys is committed to sharing the joy of tap dance through a lens of musicality, creativity, and community.